Geocaching in Kejimkujik National Park
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Series Summary
ACGA & Kejimkujik National Park are releasing on an annual basis, geocaching series along select marked trails. As incentive, there is a reward item upon completion of the series.
Click on the following links to download the listings and where to download the passport.
- 2010 Challenge Series
- 2011 Challenge Series
- 2012 Challenge Series (now available)
- 2013 Challenge Series (coming June 2013)
- Download Passport
- Garmin Adventure (download track, photos, video, waypoints, geocaches in one file)
2013 Details
May 1 2013
Planning is underway for the 4th and final series. The expectation is to have the placement done at the end of May and have the listing available soon after.
The theme this year is "Fishing", the locations will highlight some of more popular spots.
May 17 2013
Placement is happening within the next 2 weeks. I will be posting the general areas via twitter & the ACGA facebook page. You can opt to travel via hiking or biking to reach all 5 geocaches. Total hiking or biking distance will be around 49kms.
The route has been optimized so that newcomers to the series can log a good chunk of the "easy" caches and not add a significant amount of time to their schedule. I will recommend that groups of 4 should look into booking the summer Yurt, oTENTik or backcountry camp site along the route to Mason cabin (site 37). You won't be able to finish this in a single day.
Geocache listings will be submitted and published as they get approved. The final pin design is in design phase and won't arrive until July.
May 24 2013
Placement is happening this weekend. Here is a screenshot of the route. You will have to hike 3 trails with an option to hike or bike the 4th trail.
2012 Details
October 5 2012
A note that the re-supply of Keji patches & pins are at the park for those wanting to submit their completed passports. This weekend will be your last chance to drop by the visitor centre.
Note that this weekend is the last one where the visitor centre will be open until May. On October 10, gates off the main road road will be closed (ie big dam, Eel weir). Also note that as of Nov 1 a new gate will be erected just past Mill Falls, reopening on April 1 2013. READ MORE ABOUT THE CLOSURE
September 16 2012
September 14 2012
Please note that patch & pins are in low supply and a re-order has been placed. However we don't expect to receive the new supply including the 2012 pin until September 28. In which case you may hold onto your passport or write down your mailing address and leave it at the visitor centre where they can mail out once they come in.
September 13 2012
The geocaches are now published, follow the LINK to the series page and with one click download all listings to your garmin or as a GPX file. The cache listings also include a photo spoiler.
September 12 2012
The caches are now in place and the passport has been updated. Total travel distance is around 25km and expect to take 12-14 hours to complete the series. Looking at the map, the placement route is an option, however another route can be used to trim distance, time and reduce the number of portages.
It is recommended that you use a cart for the portages, plan your route and tell friends of your plan.
Who made this series possible
Once again, ACGA would like to thank Kejimkujk National Park for continuing this series and providing guidance on the theme to highlight the experience of Kejimkujik. ACGA would also like to thank The Trail Shop for providing the paddling equipment required to complete this series.
August 31 2012
A date has been set in the next few days to place the third series of geocaches inside Keji NP. The theme this year is historic waterways. As such the primary method to reach each of the cache locations will be via canoe or kayak.
Some locations can be accessible via hiking or biking but not all. As always, the main goal of the series is to focus on the experience while at the same time, log a few caches. As such some may not be physically able to reach all of the locations. This is not a race. The series is designed to be complete within a day, however you need to set your expectations accordingly.
Hold onto your passports
Counts for the patch & pins are low, in fact we are out of the Family Foundation series pin (rock pin). An order has been placed and we expect delivery sometime end of september. So you may want to hold onto your completed passport until we post that the new inventory has arrived.
New Pin for 2012
The theme is water based, so the pin will have a reproduction of one of the glyphs found at the park. The background color this year is orange.
Changes for 2012
1. Garmin Adventure package. Using the latest version of Garmin Basecamp (v4), we will be packaging the trackfile, waypoints, geocaches, photos & preview video for you to download and view offline, online or transfer onto your device. This will be the best way to grab everything you need.
2. No launch event being planned. ACGA will not be posting an event associated with the new series. However, it is encouraged that the community submit a listing and choose a date. ACGA can supply the event organizer with some swag, including goecoins.
May 30 2012
Planning is underway for the third series. With the recent Federal Government budget cuts, the park has been effected both in resources & season. Changes will be made to maximize the new realities.
Some changes will include the following:
- Front Country series has been archived.
- patch/pins are still available until supplies last.
- No official launch event being planned.
2011 Event Details
September 22 2011
The weather outlook looks like we'll enjoy some rain, so dress accordingly. The passport is available and the geocaching.com listing should be published by now. If not, you can manually enter the coords from the passport or download the paperless option (chirps) from the link above.
Passports will be at the Visitor Centre if you have not printed your own copy. Note the hours of operation in case you do manage to complete the series in a day. We will have a few patch/pins on hand during the gathering at Mill Falls 3-5pm.
Note that the punch for the Farmlands cache won't be inside the container until Friday afternoon. We were short and just got our order this week (phew!)
Chirp Troubleshooting
In most cases, the chirp should be detected ~20-30 feet from Ground Zero. However, If you are not picking up the chirp; try turning on/off your GPS unit.
September 18 2011
Last preview video before the event next weekend. This video shows you about one of easy ones as compared to preview #2.
What to Bring?
To enjoy this event, you can bring the following:
- water
- snacks / lunch
- proper clothing (check weather before you leave)
- GPS
- smartphone (opencaching or geocaching.com app installed)
- extra batteries
- bike
- canoe / kayak
September 15 2011
Here is an image of the patch with the new pins available this year. You'll probably notice that the pin a bit larger than last year. Tougher challenge, bigger pin! The plan is to have matching sizes for the blue-orange & green-yellow combinations to make it interesting.
The 2011 pin (the green one) represents family foundations where it could be the part of a wall, property marker, trail marker etc... Once you complete series #2, you will be entitled to redeem your passport with this pin.
Chirp Enabled GPSr Users Can Try Something Different
To make things interesting, chirp enabled users* are able to complete the series by discovering 5 chirps hidden within the park. Each chirp contains the coordinates to the cache location as a next stage and decode the secret message at each chirp.
BUILD UTM POI: E _ _ _ _ _ _ _ N _ _ _ _ _ _ _
At the final cache location, you will find on a sticker a few digits that you will need to decode the message. As you complete the series, you will be able to build a new waypoint (using UTM position format) for the 6th chirp hidden.
e.g. At a cache, the sticker says a=4, h=6. letters correspond to this key BUILD UTM POI: E abcdefg N hijklmn >>> E 4567543 N 6459086
The 6th chirp will contain a special message which you will need to present to the visitor centre en lieu of a punched passport (show the gps screen with the chirp details). This will entitle you to the 2011 series pin AND the limited chirp pin (shown in the image top left of the patch). 1 chirp pin per gps screen.
To start the paperless passport option, simply click and download the waypoints & cache descriptions: GET STARTED NOW. Special thank you goes out to Garmin for donating the Chirp devices for use in this series.
*Chirp compatible devices are: Oregon 300, 400c, 400i, 400t, 450, 450t, 550, 550t, Dakota 20, GPSMAP 62s, 62st, 62sc, 62sct, GPSMAP 78s, 78sc, Montana 600, 650, 650t, eTrex 30, Rino 610, 650, 655t, Astro 320, Colorado 300 (with firmware update)
What about non-chirp users?
If you don't have a chirp enabled GPSr, you can still complete the series, by downloading & printing the passport and using the provided punch at each container location.
The new passport with series#2 (2011) will be uploaded on September 21 2011, along with the listings from geocaching.com. The listings will be traditional caches where the coordinates will bring you to the container.
Reward Items
Based on whether or not you've completed a previous series, you will be entitled to the following reward items.
- If you have completed series #1 - by completing series #2, you will get the foundation pin only.
- If you have not completed any series - by completing either series #1 or series #2, you will get a trackable patch & pin.
- If you have completed the paperless passport option for series #2 - you will get the pin AND the chirp pin.
September 12 2011
Here is the latest preview video. This focuses on the 3 hardest caches of the series. You will need to paddle & bike to reach these caches. Note that when entering the backcountry that you want to check-in at the visitor centre. This is because you will be entering an isolated area with spotty to non-existent cell phone reception.
September 6 2011
Here are the last two trail descriptions for the remaining geocaches. The total distance to hike, bike, paddle will be around 41km. There will be 2 more preview videos posted to give you an idea what to expect.
Farmlands - This is a 1.1 km (round trip) hike over drumlins to what once was 20 acres of cleared land where Irish immigrants tried to farm the land back in the mid 1800's. Apple orchards are behind the reconstructed barn along with other signs of development nearby. Ask the park staff about the special pet that used to live inside the cabin that once stood. If you pay attention, you can see the apple trees within the pines. VIEW SCREENSHOT OF TRACK.
Jim Charles Cabin - This is a 900m (round trip) hike or a 3km (round trip) paddle starting from Jakes Landing. You will be hiking across the point where the group camping sites are located. But before that this area was home to the Kedgemakooge Rod and Gun Club. Guests had to call in advanced and get ferried from Jakes Landing to the Lodge as there was no road. The point was also home of Jim Charles during the early 1800's. He found gold at some point and was a person of interest from greedy businessmen. VIEW SCREENSHOT OF TRACK.
Event Activities
So far we have the following activities on the agenda. Make note that the official event time at Mill Falls is from 3pm-5pm. It is expected that geocachers will be at the park early, or even arriving on Friday. We expect you to be in the park all day hiking, biking, paddling. The gathering at Mill Falls will allow you to check-in and share your stories about your day.
9am - Group Bike Ride. Join a group of geocachers at Eel Weir Parking Lot as we attempt a 32km bike ride to log the two most difficult geocaches of this series. The group will ride out to Portage L, then double-back - Stopping by Portage G. The ride should take around 4-5 hours with a few stops and lunch along the way.
3pm-5pm - Main Event Mill Falls . Share your stories at the shelter. Some light beverages & snacks will be on hand.
8pm - Group Night Hike - A guided night hike along Gold Mine trail will be offered.
Discussion Forums - You can follow or join in the discussion on our forum via this THREAD.
September 5 2011
The remaining two geocaches have been placed and a more detailed trail description will follow in a few days. 41km of hiking, paddling & biking will be required to complete the 2nd Kejimkujik Backcountry Challenge. An increase of 3km compared to the 2010 series.
September 2 2011
Three of five geocaches have been placed. These are the hard ones, where you will need to paddle and bike in order to log in a reasonable amount of time. It is recommended to call the park and ask about the availability of backcountry #37 (Mason Cabin) and consider an overnight. The cabin is available all year and would be a perfect option for a group to hike or bike and log 2 geocaches of the series while exploring an area only the hardcore backcountry campers enjoy.
Two more preview videos will be posted, giving you a good idea what to expect. In the meantime, here are the trail descriptions so far for series #2.
Compass Rock - This is a 7.2 km (round trip) paddle or shorter depending where you launch (~6.6km from Meadow Beach). You will be paddling towards Luxie Cove Picnic Site. There was once a cabin here, built in 1942 (you can still find the foundation), but you will also see the Compass Rock. This is a properly oriented compass carved out of the granite stone. The picnic site contains a picnic table & outhouse. VIEW SCREENSHOT OF TRACK.
Logging Mill - This is a 14.8km (round trip) hike, or bike starting from Eel Weir Parking lot. Using a mountain bike (bring your bike or rent one at Jakes Landing) is the recommended mode of transportation. This used to be a public access road which has been closed for a few years, but the road condition is still good and the elevation would be similar from Gold Mine to Eel Weir (ie- not very hilly). You can also access this cache via paddle. You can launch at Eel Weir and portage a few times until you reach Portage G. The general area where this cache is located was the site of several portable logging (saw) mills. There is another cache further along the route towards Mason Cabin. Did you know that the cabin can be reserved year around? You may want to consider an overnight bike or canoe trip. VIEW SCREENSHOT OF TRACK.
Sheldon Cabin - This is a 31.4km (round trip) hike or bike starting from Eel Weir, 17.4km if you are already on trail and logged Logging Mill. Mason Cabin (backcountry site #37) is a little further down the road(~2km) and an idea of a group biking to site #37 and spending the overnight, then mountain bike out would be an excellent idea. The road to Eel Weir won't close until the first snow flies, which may not be until December. You can also continue your paddle to the cabin as part of your multi day trip. Charles Alexander Sheldon was was an American conservationist who was the Father of Denali National Park in Alaska, chose this area to relax and where he ultimately died. From the cache location, you will see the point of land where his cabin once stood on Beaverskin Lake. VIEW SCREENSHOT OF TRACK.
August 16 2011
The locations for the new series have been finalized and the placement will be in a few weeks. As with last year, you will have a number of ways to plan your attack as the majority of the locations can be accessible either via ground or by water. Depending on your options & ability, you can log anywhere from 2 to all 5 after a full day.
THIS WILL BE A CHALLENGE!!
The total amount of kms required to complete all 5 geocaches will be close to 50km. You will either hike, paddle or bike to the geocache locations.
BIKING! That's right, 2 geocache locations are along a trail designated for bikes. Bike rentals are available at Jakes Landing along with canoe/kayak. Using a bike is recommended since the distance required to get these 2 specific ones will be 36 kms.
PADDLE! 1 geocache is only accessible via canoe/kayak. It is a shorter paddle than last year's paddle location. 4 geocache locations in this series are accessible via paddle.
HIKING! 2 geocache locations are short hikes (~ 1-2 km) while 2 locations are long hikes along the same trail (~ 36 kms return to get the 2 caches).
WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?
You will spending your time in the southern part of the park. This section of the park doesn't see many visitors, but offers some of the nicest views in the park.
The theme will bring you to old foundations during the "European history" of the park. This is when cottages, cabins, lodges, logging mills & farmlands were standing. The geocache containers will be place nearby or at these locations.
PASSPORT OPTIONS
There will be a new passport issued, this will be in booklet format and will contain both 2010 & 2011 series ( don't worry if you have the old 2011 passport). It will be available to download from this site and available at the Visitor Centre on Sept 24.
All 5 geocaches will contain a punch where you will mark each spot on the passport.
Completing all 5 will allow you to redeem for the patch/pin. If you have already completed the 2010 series, then you will only get the new pin. 1st-timers will get a patch & pin for whichever series is completed.
*NEW Paperless Option* - For those with a chirp enabled Garmin GPS units, you will be able to complete this series paperless by finding 5 Garmin chirps hidden at the trailhead or parking locations where the containers are hidden nearby. By finding each chirp location, you will be presented with a mystery 6th unlisted chirp-only location to decode and the coords for the container. You will still need to find the container as it will contain information to find the 6th & final location, but you don't have to carry around a passport.
The 6th & final unlisted chirp-only location will contain a validation message and code screen. To redeem for your patch/pin, you simply need to show the visitor centre your GPS with the final screen. HINT: You may want to learn how to change the position format on your GPS to UTM.
Those who will complete the paperless option will receive an additional reward item along with the series pin.
August 12 2011
The theme for the second series will be "Family Foundations". The geocache locations will be focusing on areas within the park during the period when settlements, hunting lodges and other structures were standing.
The event date has been set for September 24 2011 at Mill Falls shelter. The event listing will be available at GC317C7
2010 Event Details
ACGA is pleased to let its membership know that ACGA is partnering with Kejimkujik National Park and Historic Site of Canada to create a new geocaching challenge with the launch event (GC2F8HE) coming on November 6th 2010!
If you had the opportunity to log the 22 geocaches that ACGA have placed in Fundy & Cape Breton Highlands National Park, then you will have a good idea what to expect.
THIS WILL BE A CHALLENGE!!
The theme for the overall challenge is “Under Starry Skies”, to coincide with the recent Dark Sky Preserve designation that the park obtained this year. Five new geocaches will be released with this theme in mind.
2010 Event Wrap-up
Two days before the event, a weather system brought well over 109 mm (+ 4 inches) of rain and wind warnings of gusts up to 90 km/h (~55 mph). The event would go on as planned as the weather warnings passed, but the forecast still had rain (~20 mm) and light winds.
Rivers, culverts and other water sheds were swollen and in some cases overflowing. Tree limbs broke from trees and littered portions of roadway as you approached the park on event day. With this grim weather picture, 36 geocachers from Nova Scotia gathered at Mill Falls to participate in the event launch of the geocaching challenge.
The shelter at Mill Falls is along the Mersey River; typically a slow moving river now was a ranging river with water levels much higher with the rainfall. This made the nearby falls much more spectacular. The nearby earthcache provided participants to take their picture with the falls as a backdrop.
Back at the shelter, thecyr arrived much earlier than planned. This was due to a number of participants wanting to get an early start to the day. Due to the nature of the challenge, the geocaches were published 2 days before the event and the passport published 12 hours before event day. This allowed participants to plan their day, and since the weather played a factor; expectations were already set. This produced a much more relaxed environment at the shelter as participants arrived within a 4 hour window instead of the typical mass arrival and outings. The shelter always had a number of participants in it.
The fire stove was warming up the shelter that provided a dry place for participants to dry off after logging a few of the geocaches. Friends of Keji donated to the event a number of food items such as coffee, tea, juice, cookies, fruit, etc..A few participants also brought extra goodies to compliment the stash.
The majority of geocachers logged three of the five geocaches that were part of the challenge, while the backcountry & paddle caches were restricted by the elevated water levels. Still, four geocachers paddled across Jeremys Bay to Indian Point, the lake was actually calm during the event. While three hiked the 16 kms and crossed waist high water crossings to reach the backcountry cache. (note: we don't recommend that you try the Rock Star alone or while the area is experiencing flooding such as this case).
The group night hike was moved up to 6:00 pm instead of the planned 6:30 pm. 14 participants gathered at Big Dam parking lot and Interpretive coordinator Paul Lalonde guided the hike towards Blazing Star geocache while providing many interesting facts & projects that have occurred along the trail including the Dark Sky Preserve.
The group also visited a walk-in camp site, which provided the group an insight of how the backcountry sites are setup. Firetacks lit the way as the array of flashlights & headlamps scanned the trail. 90 minutes later, the group emerged and the event had officially closed. Two groups returned to the group camping site & regular camping site for the night.
UPDATE - November 5 2010 - Weather Forecast & Safety
Park Canada's stance on all activities in the Park : your safety is your responsibility.
Due to the wind and rain warnings that have been issued for NS by Environment Canada for tomorrow; Parks Canada is recommending the following :
1. We do not recommend people going out on the water.
2. We do not recommend people going out at night because the increased risk.
3. We recommend that people choose the appropriate footwear and rain gear.
4. We recommend at all times, when geocachers come to Keji, that they check weather conditions at the Visitor Centre.
These recommendations will be updated with the latest conditions and forecast at the event base.
UPDATE - November 3 2010 - What to Expect & Weather
The latest forecast from Environment Canada can by summed up in two words: cold & wet. The event base (Mill Falls) is an enclosed shelter with wood stoves. We will have the shelter nice & warm for you to dry off. The event will proceed as planned and will not be canceled due to weather.
For those coming to the event, you may want to bring the following items with you:
- change of clothes
- rain suit, hat & gloves
- hiking boots
- lunch & other snacks
- water
- extra batteries, charged devices
UPDATE - November 1 2010 - Agenda Update & Event Check-in
There is a slight update to the event schedule, The Mill Falls shelter will remain open & staffed with an ACGA volunteer until 4:45. The official closing of the event will be at the conclusion of the group night hike which will start at 6:30pm at the Big Dam Parking lot. The group hike should last around 60 minutes. Bring your flashlights and keep your GPS in your pocket. The group will hike towards the Blazing Star geocache with the assistance of firetacks along the trail.
Agenda
12:30pm Event Kick Off, Welcome, Meet and Greet
12:45pm – 4:45pm Event Activities (Log geocaches that are part of the challenge or other geocaches)
6:30pm Group Night Cache Hike & Closing of Main Event
The geocaches will be published this thursday evening on geocaching.com, to allow you to plan your day. The passport will be published Friday evening to allow those who want an early start Saturday morning to reach the backcountry or paddle sites. Make sure you check-in to the event base during the afternoon.
UPDATE - October 27 2010 - The Geocaches & Passport
The geocaches that will be part of the challenge were submitted yesterday afternoon. They will be published during the evening of November 4 2010 to allow participants to load the coordinates & plan their attack for the day.
Please note that you will need your passport when logging the caches so that you will be able to redeem the completed passport for the reward item.
Gold Star (GC2G7DG) - 3k loop trail over easy terrain along Gold Mine Trail. Night cache option is available for this cache. During the winter, you will need to park your car 4k from the trailhead and walk/snowshoe/classic X ski over the road. This 4k section will be groomed for cross country skiing. Total hiking distance: 3k (spring/summer/fall) ; 11k (winter)
Blazing Star (GC2G7DD) - 6k loop trail over easy terrain with a few gentle rolling hills along Hemlocks & Hardwoods trail. Night cache option is available for this cache. This will also be the group hike night cache for the event. During the winter, you will need to park your car 2k from the trailhead and walk/snowshoe/classic X ski over the road to the Parking lot. This 2k section will be groomed for cross country skiing. Total hiking distance: 6k (spring/summer/fall); 11k (winter)
Enchanted Star (GC2G7DE) - Park and Grab wheel chair accessible geocache, along the main parkway. Total hiking distance: 20m (spring/summer/fall/winter)
Super Star (GC2H117) - Canoe / Kayak geocache located on Indian Point. This will be a 4.7k (one-way) paddle from Jakes Landing or a 2k paddle from Meadow Beach. This geocache will not be accessible during the winter due to the lake not freezing over properly. This will make any winter crossing attempt risky. For the event bring your canoe or kayak. During the regular on-season, canoe kayak rental is available at Jakes Landing. Total paddling distance: 4.7k, total hiking distance: 40m (spring/summer/fall)
Rock Star (GC2H115)- 24k loop hike to the back country towards Frozen Ocean Lake via Blazing Star (GC2G7DD). An alternative route is via the park boundary road. From the boundary gate, you will have a round trip hike distance ~12k (~ 4 hours). Do not block the gate, there are parking spots for 2-3 vehicles on the shoulder. This geocache will not be accessible during the winter as the back country section is closed. Total hiking distance: 24k (spring/summer/fall).
Some other geocaches that are not part of the challenge, but are in the immediate area are:
The passport will be made available November 5 2010 @ 9pm (via this LINK), to allow participants an early start if they wish to log as many of the challenge geocaches as possible. Please make sure you check-in at the event base during the afternoon or post your intentions to access the backcountry prior.
UPDATE - October 26 2010
Here is the second video preview. In this video I focus on the backcountry & paddle geocaches that are part of the challenge. I also placed all 5 geocaches, to gauge how long it would take to complete the challenge.
By my estimates, it should take a person about 8-9 hours to complete all 5 geocaches if they wanted to try to do it in a single day.
UPDATE - October 22 2010
During our Group night cache hike along the Hemlocks & Hardwoods trail, event participants will be able to learn more about the dark sky preserve designation. Weather permitting, cloud cover hopefully will be not a factor.
The image below illustrates how light pollution affects our ability to star gaze. Areas like Kejimkujik National Park allows for increased visibility as there is little to none light pollution.
UPDATE - October 18 2010
The visitor centre will be open from 8:30am to 4:30pm. For those who will be camping overnight, report to the visitor centre to check-in. The campground section that will be open will have electricity on all sites.
UPDATE - October 16 2010
We got the reward item in our hands! Compared to the reward item you get either at Fundy or at Cape Breton Highlands (ie- a geocoin); we wanted something that geocachers could show off since the challenge is a bit more difficult than in those two National Parks. So we came up with the trackable patch with achievement pin.
How does this work?
For those who will be completing the challenge the first time, once you return the completed geocaching passport at the visitor centre; you will receive both a trackable patch & achievement pin. It is intended that you place your pin in one of the four geocaching squares. For each following year (challenge), those who complete it will get a new achievement pin to attach to your patch. We'll have something special for those who collect all four pins.
In the picture above, you see the size of the patch, as compared to ACGA geocoins or to the trackable geocaching.com patch. The metal tag is riveted into the patch as compared to the thread on the gc.com patch. Of course the tag will contain a trackable ID, just like any other trackable. The pin is composed of 5 stars which are glow-in-the-dark.
Coordinates will be published before the event
In order to give participants ample time to plan their attack strategy, the geocache listings will be published two days before the event. Note that the passport will not be available until the morning of the event. Passports will be available at the visitor centre and on the ACGA website for download.
No Park Entry Fee
Since the event will be in the off-season, there will be no park entry fee.
Mill Falls Shelter (Event Base)
The shelter is an enclosed area, with a deck areas over looking the Mill Falls. Running water will be turned off, so we cannot use the washrooms that are attached to the shelter. However, there is an outhouse nearby that will be available. We will also have the wood stove burning, so that the shelter will be nice and toasty during the event. Don't forget that the Earthcache is nearby. Bring your lunch.
Join the Discussion
Refer to the forum discussion post to ask/answer any questions: LINK
UPDATE - September 27 2010
We did our initial site visit to work out some of the details for the event. The event base will be at Mill Falls, which is located a few hundred metres from the visitor centre. The shelter overlooks the waterfalls and site of the earthcache (GC12XG4); which we will use to introduce any newbies to geocaching.
Along with the wheel chair accessible geocache, we scouted locations along two trails. Gold Mine trail will be a 3km loop trail where you will learn about the discovery of gold within the park and how it was mined. During the winter, access to the trail head will be restricted due the road not being plowed all the way. This will add 8kn to your trek (4km one-way). The road will be groomed for classic cross country skiing, so this will be an excellent opportunity to do this geocache via snowshow or cross-country skiing.
The next trail that we scouted was Hemlocks & Hardwoods; 6km loop along mixed forest and a section featuring 300 year old hemlock trees. This trail will be used for the guided group night cache, so keep this one for last.
Geocache #1 - 3k loop trail over easy terrain along Gold Mine Trail. Night cache option is available for this cache. During the winter, you will need to park your car 4k from the trailhead and walk/snowshoe/classic X ski over the road. This 4k section will be groomed for cross country skiing. Total hiking distance: 3k (spring/summer/fall) ; 11k (winter)
Geocache #2 - 6k loop trail over easy terrain with a few gentle rolling hills along Hemlocks & Hardwoods trail. Night cache option is available for this cache. This will also be the group hike night cache for the event. During the winter, you will need to park your car 2k from the trailhead and walk/snowshoe/classic X ski over the road to the Parking lot. This 2k section will be groomed for cross country skiing. Total hiking distance: 6k (spring/summer/fall); 11k (winter)
Geocache #3 - Park and Grab wheel chair accessible geocache, along the main parkway. Total hiking distance: 40m (spring/summer/fall/winter)
Geocache #4 - Canoe / Kayak geocache located on Indian Point. This will be a 4.7k (one-way) paddle from Jakes Landing. This geocache will not be accessible during the winter due to the lake not freezing over properly. This will make any winter crossing attempt risky. For the event bring your canoe or kayak. During the regular on-season, canoe kayak rental is available at Jakes Landing. Total paddling distance: 4.7k, total hiking distance: 10m (spring/summer/fall)
Geocache #5- 24k loop hike to the back country towards Frozen Ocean Lake via Geocache #2. This geocache will not be accessible during the winter as the back country section is closed. Total hiking distance: 24k (spring/summer/fall).
TELL ME MORE!!!!
We invite geocachers to come out and spend a spectacular fall weekend at Keji. Plan an overnight of camping, or accommodations nearby as there will be a guided night cache hike to one of the five geocaches.
Agenda
12:30pm Event Kick Off, Welcome, Meet and Greet
12:45pm – 4:45pm Event Activities
5:00pm Prizes & Closing of Main Event
6:00pm Group Night Cache Hike
The event will be located at the Mill Falls shelter. There will be no entry fee and off-season camping rates will apply as running water will not be available. Most of the sites open in the campground will have electricity.
Activities
- Bring your Kayak or Canoe and go for a paddle along the Mersey River & Kejimkujik Lake.
- Find some of the newly released geocaches around the park. There are some great challenges that take you into the backcountry, so not all the caches are obtainable within the allotted time due to hiking or paddling distances. You can choose which caches you wish to target on this trip.
- Group Night Cache hike to one of the five geocaches.
What To Bring
- GPS
- flashlight or headlamp (for the night group hike)
- Appropriate clothing for the season
- hiking boots or trail shoes
- water & snacks
How to Register
- If you are a geocacher, simply indicate "will attend" on the event listing on geocaching.com
- If you are a hiker or other interested person, just need to mark "attend" on your facebook event listing.
This will help event planners estimate numbers.
Disclaimer:
- Note that you will NOT be able to complete the challenge during the launch event. It is recommended to book an overnight at the campground or at a nearby lodging.
- The reward item will be trackable on geocaching.com
- All but two of the five geocaches will accessible during the winter, otherwise they will be available all year.
- The visitor centre will be open from 8:30am to 4:30pm. For those who will be camping overnight, report to the visitor centre to check-in. The campground section that will be open will have electricity on all sites.
- The challenge will be active for an extended period of time until the supply of reward items (250) have been exhausted.